In the share this week:
1 bag salad mix
1 lbs mixed sweet potatoes
1 bunch salad turnips
1 bunch celery
1 head cabbage or 2 kohlrabi
1 head garlic
1 bunch carrots
Thoughts from Farmer Anna:
The end of the season is always a time to reflect. Thinking over the basics of what crops produced well, which didn't, which crops sold well and which didn't, what areas we could improve our efficiency, or make our daily work more enjoyable. Thinking over bigger questions, like, is our farm serving it's mission of growing community with fresh, local organic vegetables? And how do we achieve better work/life balance? (ha!)
I think we have gotten really good at vegetable production over the last 11 years. We even added 10 weekly shares on top of the number I had thought was our max production capacity, and it felt like we were able to give some really great shares all season, without any tight spots in production. This feels like an awesome achievement to me, but it means that I'm often not left with any time for the important piece of community building. And boy, do I really feel the profound importance of community right now. Modern life doesn't offer up many places and spaces for the personal connections that we all need. Connecting around food is so core to our humanity, and I really want to figure out how to make space for more of it here at the farm! That is one of the big goals that I'll be noodling on while I plan for the 2025 season. It's possible that I'll need to make some production shifts on the farm to make that happen. Our production capacity and community building goals, will also largely be determined by whether I can find the farm employee(s) that I need to keep this farm chugging along. Along with more volunteer and possibly a part-time opportunity, I'm hoping to find a full-time employee that wants to learn the ins and outs of small scale organic veg farming and will commit to two years with us, before perhaps moving on to start their own farm? It's a tall order, but that is the person I'm hoping to manifest :) I'll send out specific job description and details soon, if you may know someone who would be interested!
We are finishing the season off with some really great veggies! I'm sorry (not sorry) to be giving salad turnips again this week. I know you've had them a lot this fall, but they have been such excellent quality that I felt I needed to give some more. We just eat these up so fast in our house - they are awesome raw, dipped in hummus or ranch if you haven't given that a try yet. Today, for farm lunch I roasted some, along with carrots. Then sauteed onions and peppers and threw all these veg together in a wrap with hummus and feta cheese. So simple and delicious! You could also chop up the turnips to eat with your salad mix. They are so mild and sweet, they pretty much pair with anything!
This week we are giving a mix of the orange and white sweet potatoes. They would be so pretty cut up and roasted together as a side dish. Or you could use them along with your cabbage/kohlrabi and garlic in an amped up version of pad thai:
If you aren't sure whether you'll use your celery up this week, you could chop and freeze it for use later (maybe in a Thanksgiving stuffing, perhaps?). I've really been enjoying the celery in soups these last couple of weeks.
Thanks to each and every one of you for your support of our farm this season! We hope you enjoyed your veggies, maybe tried a new one (or a new recipe), and connected with the people you love over some honest good food. Have a lovely winter season and we'll be in touch!